Founded in 1989 by Phil Jaurigue and two partners, Sabre Systems, Inc. is a technology and engineering consulting company that has grown to over 600 professionals operating both nationally and internationally.  They’ve won the Philly 100 eight times, have competed successfully with the likes of Lockheed Martin and Computer Sciences Corp, and built a well-respected and well-run business.

One of Phil’s biggest lessons in the past two decades?

Don’t let success fool you – an appropriate one given the upcoming Philly 100 awards this week.

“Success can breed some very bad habits,” he shared with me recently.  “You can never forget, no matter what industry you’re in, the importance of doing the right business and market intelligence.”

Phil was relaying the story of what had happened to them when the company was still less than $20million and flying high with their successes to date.  “We were definitely drinking the Kool-aid,” he said with an awkward smile.

“We were going after bids that would have tripled the size of the company.  One, with a major defense contractor and worth over $100 million, we were sure that we were going to get.  We had the finances, the team, the product…but forgot the most basic ingredient – you need a message that will resonate with the customer, you need to understand what they really need, what their pain points really are.”

Phil shakes his head remembering.

“We probably spent nine months pulling together the bid, creating a team of fifteen companies.  In the end we put all of our eggs in one basket for a year…so much so that we overlooked a number of smaller opportunities that could have kept us moving forward. We forgot one of the most important commandment of business – KNOW THY CUSTOMER.”

Phil’s takeways from the experience?

  • Stop looking in the rear view mirror and patting yourself on the back;
  • Don’t let success fool you into forgetting the basics, and
  • Do your homework – especially as it relates to your customers and your market.

Good business practices aren’t about taking short cuts and forgetting the basics.  As Phil has told me several times, “It’s all about the basics.”

Is your company a growth business like Sabre Systems?

Have you been successful despite the odds over the last few years?

If you’re ready to ensure your success and start looking forward – make sure to sign up for our “Rockefeller Habits Four Decisions Executive Workshop” – coming December 8th.  You’ll come away with:

* A great headstart on your 2012 One Page Strategic plan to focus you AND your team

* An overview of the Four Decisions (People, Cash, Strategy, Execution) that you must get right to create sustainable growth and…

* An aligned, committed and enthusiastic team, ready to hit the ground running in 2012!

For more information or to sign up, click here!

(In case you haven’t seen it – click here (YT: Rockefeller Habits Seminar – Cheryl Beth Kuchler)to see one CEO’s very humorous story of how he ensured his success – and his team’s!)

AND – there’s still a few seats left for our ROARing Video workshop on November 2nd taught by Matt Scott and Kevin Daum, authors of the forthcoming Video Marketing for Dummies book!

Come spend just One Affordable Day learning how to write, shoot, edit and post business videos that will generate leads for your business and close deals!

You’ll walk away from this all day interactive workshop with a “ready-for-launch” video – and – ideas and scripts for more. You’ll get the knowledge you need to incorporate video in your company for maximum impact.  The cost is just $995 per company and you get to bring 2 attendees.  This session is first come, first serve and is limited so sign up now! For more information or to sign up, click here!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,